''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' is the second studio album by American indie duo

Big Red Machine The Big Red Machine is a nickname for the Cincinnati Reds baseball team that dominated the National League from 1970 to 1979 and is widely recognized as being among the best in baseball history. The team won six National League West Division t ...

, which consists of musicians

Aaron Dessner Aaron Brooking Dessner (born April 23, 1976) is an American musician. He is best known as a founding member of the rock band The National (band), the National, with whom he has recorded nine studio albums; a co-founder of the indie rock duo Big ...

and

Justin Vernon Justin DeYarmond Edison Vernon (born April 30, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He is best-known as the primary songwriter and Lead vocalist, frontman of indie folk band Bon Iver. He is also a member o ...

. It was released on August 27, 2021, via 37d03d and

Jagjaguwar Jagjaguwar is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana. History In 1996, in Charlottesville, Virginia, University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public resear ...

record labels. Dessner stated the album is built around themes of childhood, familial dynamics, and

mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...

. He cited ''

The Last Waltz ''The Last Waltz'' was a concert by the Canadian-American rock group the Band, held on American Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. ''The Last Waltz'' was advertised as the Band's "farewell concert a ...

'', the 1978 live album by

the Band The Band was a Canadian-American rock music, rock band formed in Toronto, Ontario, in 1957. It consisted of the Canadians Rick Danko (bass, guitar, vocals, fiddle), Garth Hudson (organ, keyboards, accordion, saxophone), Richard Manuel (piano, d ...

, as an inspiration for the record. The album is a collaborative effort featuring guest vocals from an array of artists–

Anaïs Mitchell Anaïs Mitchell (; born March 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright. Mitchell has released eight studio albums, including ''Hadestown (album), Hadestown'' (2010), ''Young Man in America'' (2012),Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Known for her autobiographical songwriting, artistic versatility, and Cultural impact of Taylor Swift, cultural impact, Swift is one of the Best selling artists, w ...

Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes are an American indie folk band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 2006. The band currently consists of Robin Pecknold (vocals, guitar), Skyler Skjelset (guitar, mandolin, backing vocals), Casey Wescott (keyboards, mandolin, backin ...

, Ilsey, Naeem,

Sharon Van Etten Sharon Katharine Van Etten (born February 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actress. Originally from New Jersey, and currently based in Los Angeles, Van Etten's music is noted for its indie rock aesthetic and personal lyric ...

Lisa Hannigan Lisa Margaret Hannigan (born 12 February 1981) is an Irish musician, singer, composer, and voice actress. She began her musical career as a member of Damien Rice's band. Since beginning her solo career in 2007 she has released three albums: '' S ...

Shara Nova Shara Nova (previously Worden) is the lead singer and songwriter for My Brightest Diamond. As a composer she is most recognized for her choral compositions and the baroque chamber opera "You Us We All". New music composers Sarah Kirkland Snider ...

, La Force,

Ben Howard Benjamin John Howard (born 24 April 1987) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and composer. His self-released debut extended play (EP) ''Games in the Dark'' (2008) was followed by two more EPs, '' These Waters'' (2009) and '' Old Pine'' ...

and

This Is the Kit This Is The Kit is the alias of British musician Kate Stables, as well as the band she fronts. Critical attention This Is The Kit were a long-time favourite among various BBC Radio 6 Music DJs, which is where the musician and presenter Guy Garv ...

. Musically, the record is a mostly slow-paced

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

album, consisting of

midtempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given composition, and is often also an indication of the composition's character or atmos ...

songs led by soft pianos and guitars, as well as drawing from the

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

and

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...

styles of Dessner and Vernon, respectively. The subject matter covered in the album includes a variety of sombre themes, such as love, loss, grief, nostalgia, reconciliation, and the odyssey of life. Five singles preceded the album: "Latter Days" featuring Mitchell, "The Ghost of Cincinnati", " Renegade" featuring Swift, "Phoenix" featuring Mitchell and Fleet Foxes, and "Mimi" featuring Ilsey. Upon release, ''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' was met with generally positive comments from

music critic '' The Oxford Companion to Music'' defines music criticism as "the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres". In this sense, it is a branch of m ...

s, who mostly complimented its melancholic lyrics, stylistic sound, and guest contributions, but cited its frequently monotonous instrumentation as a drawback.

Background

is an American supergroup formed by musicians

and

in 2008. Dessner is best known as the guitarist of the American

band the National, whereas Vernon the vocalist of American

indie folk Indie folk (also called alternative folk) is an alternative genre of music that arose in the 1990s among musicians from indie rock scenes influenced by folk music. Characteristics The staff of '' Paste Magazine'' said in 2020: "No music genre ...

band

Bon Iver Bon Iver ( ) is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Vernon had originally formed Bon Iver as a solo project, but it eventually became a band consisting of Vernon (vocals, guit ...

. Big Red Machine released their self-titled debut studio album on August 31, 2018, to positive reviews. Since ''Big Red Machine'', Dessner and Vernon have worked with

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American alternative rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the fir ...

Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe was born in Metro Atlanta in January 1960. Due to his father's militar ...

on the track "No Time for Love Like Now" (2019), covered

Aimee Mann Aimee Elizabeth Mann (born September 8, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter. Over the course of four decades, she has released ten studio albums as a solo artist. She is noted for her sardonic and literate lyrics about dark subjects, often d ...

's "Wise Up" (2020), and more. In August 2020, Bon Iver released a song called "AUATC" featuring

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...

Jenny Lewis Jennifer Diane Lewis (born January 8, 1976) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. She is the lead singer, rhythm guitarist, and keyboardist for the indie rock band Rilo Kiley. Lewis gained prominence in the 1980s as a child ...

, and

Jenn Wasner Jennifer Lynn Wasner (born April 16, 1986) is an American musician from Baltimore, Maryland, Baltimore. Wasner is best known as one of the founding members of the band Wye Oak (band), Wye Oak, along with Andy Stack (Musician), Andy Stack. Wasner ...

. In December 2020, Dessner revealed that American singer-songwriter

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Known for her autobiographical songwriting, artistic versatility, and Cultural impact of Taylor Swift, cultural impact, Swift is one of the Best selling artists, w ...

, who he had worked with on her eighth studio album ''

Folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

'', had written two songs, "Closure" and " Dorothea", for Big Red Machine's forthcoming project. However, the songs landed on her ninth studio album, ''

Evermore ''Evermore'' (stylized in all lowercase) is the ninth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. It was surprise-released on December 11, 2020, by Republic Records. Swift conceived ''Evermore'' as a "sister record" to its p ...

'', instead.

Writing and recording

Dessner described the album as a collaborative project. The collaborations are with the artists who Dessner and Vernon had been working with in 2020. Unlike its predecessor ''Big Red Machine'', which leaned heavily on Vernon's voice, ''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' features an array of guest vocalists, such as Anaïs Mitchell, Taylor Swift, American indie-folk band

, American singer-songwriter Ilsey, American rapper Naeem (popularly known as Spank Rock), American singer-songwriter

, Irish musician

, American musician

(of band

My Brightest Diamond My Brightest Diamond is the project of singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Shara Nova. The band has released five studio albums and a remix album, five studio EPs and four remix EPs, and made several tours across the United States. Hist ...

), La Force (solo project of Canadian

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

singer

Ariel Engle Ariel Engle is a Canadian indie pop singer and songwriter who records and performs as a solo artist and with Broken Social Scene. Ben Rayner, "Broken Social Scene put it back together for Hug of Thunder". ''Toronto Star'', July 5, 2017. Engle fir ...

), English singer-songwriter

, and British

folk rock Folk rock is a fusion genre of rock music with heavy influences from pop, English and American folk music. It arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music re ...

musician

This Is The Kit This Is The Kit is the alias of British musician Kate Stables, as well as the band she fronts. Critical attention This Is The Kit were a long-time favourite among various BBC Radio 6 Music DJs, which is where the musician and presenter Guy Garv ...

; Notably, Mitchell is featured on three tracks, while Swift is on two. Dessner provided lead vocals for the first time in his career, on three tracks; they are "Magnolia", "Brycie" and "The Ghost of Cincinnati". Mitchell stated Dessner was nervous about having his own lead vocals on the songs and that she encouraged him to "absolutely" record his own, especially after his work with Swift on ''Folklore'' and ''Evermore'', Mitchel felt that it is "nice to have people get a look behind that curtain, to get to know the person who's behind a bunch of this stuff." "The Ghost of Cincinnati" was a song that Dessner had meant for Swift's project, but she convinced him it fit Big Red Machine's record more. It was inspired by a

screenplay A screenplay, or script, is a written work produced for a film, television show (also known as a '' teleplay''), or video game by screenwriters (cf. ''stage play''). Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of w ...

called ''Dandelion'' by filmmaker Nicole Riegel, who also co-wrote the lyrics. Dessner said the song is about "someone who feels like a ghost, stalking the streets of their hometown, interrogating the past and contemplating their fate". "Brycie" is one of the first songs Dessner wrote for the album. He wrote it to express gratitude to his twin brother and National bandmate,

Bryce Dessner Bryce David Dessner (born April 23, 1976) is an American composer and guitarist based in Paris, and a member of the rock band the National. Dessner's twin brother, Aaron is also a member of the group. Together, they write the music in collabo ...

, who "saw him through bouts of depression". Much of the album was recorded at Dessner's Long Pond Studio in

Hudson Valley, New York The Hudson Valley or Hudson River Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The region stretches from the Capital District (New York), Capital District includi ...

, from 2018 through 2021. The collaborations with Swift, "Birch" and "Renegade", were recorded at her

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in-home studio, Kitty Committee, in the same week they had won the Album of the Year for ''Folklore'' at the

63rd Annual Grammy Awards The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held in and around the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles on March 14, 2021. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from September 1, 201 ...

. Dessner stated that Swift was "very helpful and engaged" with the band throughout the recording process. Many of the album's tracks were tested on-road at Big Red Machine concerts around the world, including "Easy To Sabotage" and "Reese". Dessner stated he was using the project "to really try different things, and find the connection between my different impulses". "Phoenix" was one of the last songs written for the album. Vernon first conceived the melody of the song's chorus while driving, and Dessner forwarded its sketch to American singer-songwriter

Robin Pecknold Robin Noel Pecknold (born March 30, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter, who serves as the principal songwriter and vocalist for indie folk band Fleet Foxes, with whom he has recorded four studio albums. He is known for his distinct baritenor ...

, the vocalist of Fleet Foxes, whom Dessner had been "dreaming" to collaborate on the album. Nico Lang and Pecknold wrote the song's verses and

pre-chorus Song structure is the arrangement of a song, and is a part of the songwriting process. It is typically section (music), sectional, which uses repeating forms in songs. Common piece-level musical forms for vocal music include bar form, thirty-two-ba ...

in form of a dialogue with Vernon, recalling a conversation Pecknold and Vernon once had backstage in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

. Mitchell penned the lyrics to the chorus, with drums by JT Bates. "Mimi" was written by Dessner, Vernon, and Ilsey in isolation, inspired by the former's gratitude towards his children. James Krivchenia provided the drums in the song. Dessner said that he viewed ''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' as a version of ''

'', the 1978 album by Canadian rock band

. For its instrumentation, he took cues the Band, and American rock band

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in Palo Alto, California, in 1965. Known for their eclectic style that fused elements of rock, blues, jazz, Folk music, folk, country music, country, bluegrass music, bluegrass, roc ...

as well. The orchestrations of ''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' were composed by Bryce Dessner.

Promotion and release

On June 27, 2021, a cryptic video teaser was posted to Big Red Machine's social media accounts. It featured layered, multi-colored visuals, depicting Vernon and Dessner, and shots of Swift's handwriting. Two days later, the band announced their second studio album, titled ''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'', would be released on August 27, 2021, by the band's own record label 37D03D and American independent label

. The band also revealed the cover artwork and the track listing. The digital, CD,

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...

and cassette versions of the album were made available for

pre-order A pre-order is an order placed for an item that has not yet been released. The idea for pre-orders came because people found it hard to get popular items in stores because of their popularity. Companies then had the idea to allow customers to r ...

. On August 9, 2021, Dessner was interviewed by

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

Apple Music 1 Apple Music 1, previously branded as Beats 1, is a 24/7 music radio station owned and operated by Apple Inc. It is accessible through iTunes or the Apple Music app on a computer, smartphone or tablet, smart speaker (such as the Apple HomePod), a ...

about ''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' On August 10, 2021, Big Red Machine, Mitchell, and Pecknold performed "Phoenix", and debuted the track "New Auburn" live on ''

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night talk show, late-night news satire, news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Stephen Colbert, Spartin ...

.'' An interview of Dessner by music journalist

Jon Pareles Jon Pareles (born 1953) is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of ''The New York Times''.The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' on August 19, 2021, in which Dessner explained the album's making.

Singles

"Latter Days" featuring American singer-songwriter

Anaïs Mitchell Anaïs Mitchell (; born March 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright. Mitchell has released eight studio albums, including ''Hadestown (album), Hadestown'' (2010), ''Young Man in America'' (2012),single from the album, a song Vernon had debuted live in October 2020 during a ''Visit With Vernon'' live session. Dessner stated, "It was clear to Anaïs that the early sketch Justin and I made of 'Latter Days' was about childhood, or loss of innocence and nostalgia for a time before you've grown into adulthood — before you've hurt people or lost people and made mistakes. She defined the whole record when she sang that, as these same themes kept appearing again and again." "The Ghost of Cincinnati" was released as the next single on June 30, 2021. "Renegade", featuring Swift, was released on July 2, 2021, as the third single from the album. It was serviced to U.S.

adult album alternative Adult album alternative (also triple-A, AAA, or adult alternative) is a radio format. See pages 9 and 10Mills, Joshua. "A New Radio Music Format: Rock for Prosperous Adults" New York Times, Feb 28 1994, p. 2. ProQuest. Web. Accessed September 4, ...

radio the same day, and the

adult contemporary radio Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, ...

on July 12, 2021. "Renegade" marked Big Red Machine's first entry on various

record chart A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of Sound recording and reproduction, recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, ofte ...

s around the globe. In the United States, the song arrived at number 73 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, number seven on the ''Billboard'' Alternative Songs chart, and topped the Alternative Digital Songs Sales chart. "Phoenix", featuring Mitchell and

, impacted U.S. adult album alternative radio on August 2, 2021, as the fourth single. "Mimi", featuring Ilsey, was released on August 5, 2021, as the next single.

Title and artwork

Swift suggested the lyric written by Mitchell, "How long do you think it's gonna last?", in the track "Latter Days", as the title for the album. The promotional photos for the album were shot and edited by photographer Graham Tolbert. The cover artwork is an edited "

preschool A preschool (sometimes spelled as pre school or pre-school), also known as nursery school, pre-primary school, play school, is an school, educational establishment or learning space offering early childhood education to children before they ...

-era" photograph of Aaron and Bryce Dessner, and their sister Jessica from their visit to their grandmother Stella's

nursing home A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of older people, senior citizens, or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as care homes, skilled nursing facilities (SNF), or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms ...

in 1980. Aaron Dessner explained that his grandmother was the first person the siblings had lost to death, and that "somehow it felt fitting" to put her and themselves in the album cover.

Music and lyrics

''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' centers on themes of childhood, family dynamics, mental health, friends, love, break-ups, reconciliation, grief, wistful nostalgia, regret, among others. Musically, the album is a

record, consisting of songs generally set to slower tempos. It incorporates

styles and glitchy

elements. Driven by soft pianos and guitars, its tracks are characterized by their traditional

song structure Song structure is the arrangement of a song, and is a part of the songwriting process. It is typically sectional, which uses repeating forms in songs. Common piece-level musical forms for vocal music include bar form, 32-bar form, verse–chorus ...

s and fully "fleshed-out"

arrangement In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestr ...

s. It consists of 15 tracks, nine of which feature vocals from guest acts. "Latter Days" is a piano ballad with an atmospheric texture, in which Mitchell's voice melds with Vernon's

falsetto Falsetto ( , ; Italian language, Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ...

. "Reese" is a piano-led,

tune. "Birch" is a " jazzy" duet between Swift and Vernon. It is a stripped-back song driven by a piano. "Renegade" features Swift's lead vocals, and discusses the role of fear and anxiety in love. "Phoenix" is a

country rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal sty ...

song, titled after

. "The Ghost of Cincinnati" is an acoustic tune, completely sung by Dessner. It is about

introspection Introspection is the examination of one's own conscious thoughts and feelings. In psychology, the process of introspection relies on the observation of one's mental state, while in a spiritual context it may refer to the examination of one's s ...

and

contemplation In a religious context, the practice of contemplation seeks a direct awareness of the Divinity, divine which Transcendence (religion), transcends the intellect, often in accordance with religious practices such as meditation or contemplative pr ...

of past while taking a stroll through hometown like ghost haunting the streets. "Mimi" is titled after Dessner's youngest daughter. "Easy to Sabotage" incorporates recordings of its live performances at two different shows in New York, and makes use of

auto-tune Auto-Tune is audio processor software released on September 19, 1997, by the American company Antares Audio Technologies. It uses a proprietary device to measure and Pitch correction, correct pitch in music. It operates on different principles ...

. It features improvised "semi- raps" from Vernon and Naeem over rough drums. "Hutch", featuring "haunting" harmonies by Van Etten, Hannigan and Nova, is a tribute to late

Frightened Rabbit Frightened Rabbit were a Scottish indie rock band from Selkirk, formed in 2003. Initially a solo project for vocalist and guitarist Scott Hutchison, the final lineup of the band consisted of Hutchison, his brother Grant (drums), Billy Kenned ...

frontman

Scott Hutchison Scott John Hutchison (20 November 1981 – 9 May 2018) was a Scottish singer, songwriter, guitarist and artist. He was the founding member and primary songwriter of the indie rock band Frightened Rabbit, with whom he recorded five studio albums ...

, a close friend of Aaron Dessner. "June's a River" is a

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

love song, blending vocals from Howard and This Is The Kit in "lush harmony". A tribute to Bryce Dessner, "Brycie" begins with

guitars and grows into a patchwork of organic and synthetic sounds behind Aaron Dessner's gentle vocals. The closing track, "New Auburn", is set in Wisconsin, having its narrator reminisce over childhood road trips.

Critical reception

''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' received positive reviews upon release. At

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the album received a score of 76 out of 100 based on fifteen reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Ian Gormely of ''

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly ''Exclaim!'' print magazine publishes seven ...

'' dubbed the album a "masterclass" in production, and an "austere collection" of songs successfully blending Vernon's fondness for

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

with Dessner's guitar and piano compositions. ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' critic Elizabeth Audrey wrote the album's lyrics encompass "the full range of human emotion", while its music takes a braver direction than Big Red Machine's debut record.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

Marcy Donelson described ''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' as a mellow, poignant, and immersive collection of songs adhering to "a dreamy, wistful, midtempo universe", seeing guest vocalists "float in and out of duets." Sputnikmusic said ''How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last?'' is an experiment that could have failed, "drowned under the weight of its expectations and indie-sphere clout before it had a chance to breathe", but the sheer flair of Vernon-Dessner collaboration "makes it soar instead." Sean Kerwick of '' DIY'' commented "there's a terrific bounty to be enjoyed in the centre of the Vernon-Dessner

Venn diagram A Venn diagram is a widely used diagram style that shows the logical relation between set (mathematics), sets, popularized by John Venn (1834–1923) in the 1880s. The diagrams are used to teach elementary set theory, and to illustrate simple ...

", appreciating their chemistry and guest singers' contributions. Jeremy Winograd of ''

Slant Slant can refer to: Bias *Bias or other non- objectivity in journalism, politics, academia or other fields Technical * Slant range, in telecommunications, the line-of-sight distance between two points which are not at the same level * Slant ...

'' stated the album is a "somber affair" like much of Dessner's works, but the guest vocalists and songwriting collaborators help the record reach "a much broader musical palette." ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' critic Hannah Jocelyn dubbed it a solid record with a pleasant tone, but not a very innovative one for the band's discography, highlighting the presence of Dessner's "repetitive" piano chords in nearly all of its tracks. Music journalist

Alexis Petridis Alexis Petridis (born 13 September 1971) is an English journalist. He is the head Rock music, rock and pop music critic for ''The Guardian'', and a regular contributor for ''GQ''. In addition to his music journalism for the paper, he has written ...

expressed a slightly mixed opinion in his review on ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''. He admired Dessner's voice and called it the "most striking" amongst all of the featured vocalists, but stated the album feels longer than it is, due to its static tone, and some tracks more sentimental than they need to be.

Track listing

Adapted from

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

and

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

Note

* signifies an additional producer

Personnel

Adapted from YouTube description and Genius credits. *

– bass guitar , drum machine programming , piano , acoustic guitar , OP-1 , electric guitar , shaker , synth , high strung guitar , vocals , upright piano , rubber bridge guitar , synthesizer , other guitar , synth bass , bass drum , clack , Prophet X , Mellotron , sequencer , snare , tambourine , kick drum , cymbal *

– vocals , electric guitar , Mellotron , whistling , synth , Messina *

– orchestration , electric guitar , acoustic guitar * James Krivchenia – drums * JT Bates – drums * Brad Cook – Mellotron , bass guitar , ebow bass , synth *

Anaïs Mitchell Anaïs Mitchell (; born March 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright. Mitchell has released eight studio albums, including ''Hadestown (album), Hadestown'' (2010), ''Young Man in America'' (2012),Michael Lewis Michael Monroe Lewis (born October 15, 1960) Gale Biography In Context. is an American author and financial journalist. He has also been a contributing editor to '' Vanity Fair'' since 2009, writing mostly on business, finance, and economics. ...

– saxophone *

– vocals *Yuki Numata Resnick – violin , viola * Jason Treuting – drums *Dave Nelson – trombone , trumpet *

– vocals , songwriting * Thomas Bartlett – piano , Prophet X , ELZ_1 Synthesizer , synthesizer , synth , Mellotron * Benjamin Lanz – modular synthesizer , synthesizer *

Bryan Devendorf Bryan Devendorf is an American drummer. He is best known as a founding member of the indie rock band The National, with whom he has recorded ten studio albums. Devendorf is also a member of the experimental rock bands Pfarmers and LNZNDRF. In ...

– drum machine programming *

Andrew Broder Andrew Broder (April 16, 1845 – January 4, 1918) was an Ontario farmer, merchant and political figure. He represented Dundas in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1875 to 1886 and in the House of Commons of Canada from 1896 to 1911 as a ...

– synthesizer *

– vocals , Mellotron , piano *Andy Clausen – trombone *Willem de Koch – trombone *Riley Mulherkar – trombone *Chloe Rowlands – trombone * Ryan Olson – Allovers Hi-Hat Generator *

Kyle Resnick Beirut is an American indie folk project formed in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 2006, by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Zach Condon, who is the band's primary recording artist and sole constant member. In the studio and during live perf ...

– flugelhorn * S. Carey – Prophet X *

Ilsey Juber Ilsey Anna Juber (, ; born April 17, 1986) is a British American singer and professional songwriter from Los Angeles, California. Before releasing her debut album ''From the Valley'' in 2023, Juber co-wrote songs for popular artists such as Bey ...

– vocals * Naeem – vocals *

– vocals *

– vocals *James McAlister – electronic drums

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2021 albums Big Red Machine (band) albums Jagjaguwar albums Albums produced by Aaron Dessner Pop albums by American artists